UN chief extends order for telecommuting till April 30

2020-04-02 Xinhua Editor:Gu Liping

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has decided to extend his order for all UN staff to work from home till April 30, said his spokesman on Wednesday.

"The secretary-general has extended that for a few more weeks," said Stephane Dujarric, the spokesman. "The telecommuting arrangements have been extended till April 30."

Guterres had ordered all UN staff, unless their physical presence in office is needed to carry out essential UN business, to work from home between March 16 and April 12 to mitigate the spread of COVID-19 at UN Headquarters in New York.

The extension is obviously in line with the rapid spread of the virus in New York City. According to data from the city's Department of Health, 41,771 COVID-19 cases were reported with 1,096 deaths in the city's five boroughs by March 31.

Guterres' order has dramatically reduced the footprint at UN Headquarters. On Monday, only 89 swipes into the premises were recorded, in contrast to about 11,000 on a normal day before the restrictive measures were introduced, according to Dujarric.

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